President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that American carriers would be permitted to resume direct flights to Lebanon, ending a four-decade suspension that followed a 1985 hijacking.
The route was originally halted by President Ronald Reagan’s administration after the TWA Flight 847 incident.
“I am hereby directing my Administration to allow all U.S. airline carriers to fly directly to Lebanon so that Americans can easily visit this beautiful land,” Trump stated in a social media post.
The announcement followed a meeting with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at the White House, where Trump pledged to help Lebanon “a lot.”
President Aoun’s visit to Washington aimed to secure long-term calm for his nation, which has been embroiled in months of conflict between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group. The U.S. has been increasingly preoccupied by a new round of escalation in the war with Iran, which has destabilized much of the Middle East.
Lebanon hopes the discussions will lead to the withdrawal of Israeli troops from significant portions of southern Lebanon and bolster the Lebanese military’s capacity to assert full control in areas previously dominated by Hezbollah.
Trump indicated that Israeli forces were “in the process of doing that. They’re in the process of redeploying,” though he offered no further details.
President Aoun, whose visit marked the first by a Lebanese leader since 2009, praised Trump, stating, “Your vision is peace,” and calling it Trump’s “legacy.”
Trump responded lightheartedly, agreeing with the sentiment and joking about Aoun’s charm.
The resumption of flights comes amid efforts to implement a “framework agreement” announced on June 26, which outlines a plan for Israeli forces to withdraw and for Hezbollah to disarm. The agreement’s implementation was slated to begin in small “pilot zones.”
The U.S. State Department confirmed Monday that operations had commenced in three villages within one such zone: Froun, Srifa, and Zawtar al-Gharbieh.
While the Lebanese army was already present in Froun and Srifa, which were not under Israeli military control, Israeli forces had previously occupied a section of Zawtar al-Gharbieh.
The Israeli military stated it would “adjust its force posture in one of the pilot areas in order to enable the Lebanese Armed Forces to carry out their mission,” without specifying the location.
The Lebanese army reported deploying troops in Zawtar al-Gharbieh on Tuesday.
The June 26 agreement also includes provisions for an eventual peace accord between Israel and Lebanon, two nations that have been nominally at war for nearly 80 years without formal diplomatic ties.
However, the initial rollout of the pilot zones has been fraught with confusion and conflict. It remained unclear whether Israeli troops had actually withdrawn from any territory on Tuesday.
A Lebanese military official, speaking anonymously, expressed uncertainty about whether Israeli forces had been in Zawtar al-Gharbieh before Tuesday, noting their presence in adjacent areas and a readiness to open fire on anyone attempting to enter.
An Israeli military official, also speaking anonymously, countered that Israeli forces had not been in Zawtar al-Gharbieh “for quite a time” and “we didn’t withdraw from there.”
The Lebanese military reported that Israeli troops fired near their deployment area on Tuesday, while the Israeli military claimed Lebanese soldiers had entered an area outside the pilot zone, prompting warning shots.
The Lebanese army disputed this, asserting its soldiers were within the designated pilot zone and urged Israel to resolve disputes through “established coordination and communication channels, instead of resorting to aggression.”
Abed Ezzeldine, the mayor of Zawtar al-Gharbieh, voiced caution, awaiting confirmation from the Lebanese military regarding the safety for displaced residents to return.
He noted that civilians would only “check it out and see how things are and then we will leave,” adding, “We can’t stay because the infrastructure is completely damaged and houses have been leveled.
They (the Israelis) have bulldozed the roads.” The Lebanese military had increased its presence in areas expected to be part of the pilot zone in the preceding week.
President Aoun also met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who affirmed Washington’s continued endorsement of the Lebanese agreement and its full implementation.
Rubio cautioned that Lebanon would “never be fully at peace” until the Hezbollah issue is resolved, stating, “How do you replace Hezbollah? You defeat and replace them with a government that is strong enough to be the sole force of arms in the country.”
